The entire month of January 2015 was hell for me & my family. Before the event that took place that month, I used to think that the mad people roaming the streets were all victims of drug abuse, alas I was wrong.

I'll love to use this opportunity to say a very big THANK YOU to the members of Nairaland family who kept on encouraging and praying for me throughout that difficult period. @shegsrules, @menix, @yorex2011 @lastmessenger, @dorox, @tranglatar, @twosquare @GoldCircle, @Orex @adexsimply, @haibe. You guys were awesome. May God continue to bless & lift you.
I cannot say enough thanks to @alexk2 and @tranglatar. These are guys I have never seen in my life yet they encouraged me like a blood brother. May God bless your hearts & grant all your heart desires this year and beyond in Jesus Name. Amen!
I created this thread www.nairaland.com/2083522/please-advice-sister-needs-urgent on the 9th of January 2015 when I desperately needed advice from experienced & wise Nairalanders. Although the thread never saw the frontpage, the little advice and prayers I got from the few who commented were more than enough to push me through.

It's over a year now and I'm delighted to share the testimony of how my sister was delivered from insanity. True to the comment of one of the God-sent Nairalanders on the previous thread, my sister had been battling with depression for a while and was trying to use religion as a succour. Her sudden withdrawal from everyone was a sign of depression but we mistook it for trying to be closer to God. To cut the long story short, the climax of the whole experience was on the 10th of January 2015 at about 11:05pm. Earlier that evening, my sister returned from church and was muttering some incoherent words to herself that made me really suspicious but she acted normal. Even when I asked her questions, she answered very well. Mum had retired to bed and I was in my room reading comments/advice from the previous thread about her issue. I heard strange noises from the sitting room/kitchen but I assumed my sister was probably trying to clean up the dishes and return some other stuff like water into the fridge. I was very wrong. Not until I heard a loud bang that I jumped up from bed and ran to the sitting room, what I saw shocked me to my marrows. Right there was my sister with a knife in one hand and an electric kettle on the other (it was with these she made the loud bang), her clothes (the one my mum gave her to wear) were torn to shreds & she was almost completely unclad. She had torn the sofa with the knife, pulled out a wall lamp by force, poured out all the contents of the standing fridge and chest freezers, torn open the bag of rice, smashed all the crates of egg on the wall, went to the store and poured the cement I kept on herself, sliced the yams, fishes and potatoes in the kitchen, poured disinfectant all over the kitchen, bursted open the bag of garri, shredded a part of the matress in her room & even tore the wrapper her little daughter who feel asleep while watching cartoon in the palour used to cover herself, infact a part of the house was upside down.

I couldn't believe all that happened while I was fully awake in my room (though my door was shut & the sound system was quite loud). At this time, my mum woke up and joined me in the sitting room. I quickly grabbed the knife and kettle from her and locked her arms to her back in a bid to overpower her. Mum was praying and crying and even slipped (because the mixture of rice grains, water, smashed eggs, turkey wings/laps, tomato paste etc made the tiles very slippery and difficult to walk on. We were confused on who to call or how to manage the situation. I tried asking her what was wrong with her and why she turned the house upside down, her response was that she was looking for her academic credentials (she had earlier burnt all her credentials). When my sister realized I won't release her arms, she was becoming aggressive. She was saying all sort of meaningless things and begging me to release her to go outside. She kept seeing all the cartoon characters on TV as herself and even thought the grains of rice scattered on the floor were a multitude of people.

By the grace of God, a doctor was able to sedate her by 12:37am. By that time, I was exhausted, frustrated, scared, shocked and sad. I just couldn't find the right words to console my mum. She was devastated. Needless to say we could not sleep till dawn. Each time my sister woke up from her deep sleep, we got scared of what her next reaction will be. It took days and extra hands to clean up the mess in the house. To shorten the story, after pastors came to the house to pray, we took her to a psychiatric hospital and she was on drugs for months till her condition improved. Today, she is doing very well and even works with a multinational organisation (through the help of a friend).

I learnt several lessons from this sad event which I'll like to share:

1. Anyone can suffer depression.

2. Not only drug abuse, but sleeplessness, over anxiety, frustration and depression can lead to mental illness.

3. We must learn to pay attention and make efforts to remedy the situation when we observe strange changes in our loved ones i.e seclusion & withdrawal from social activities or people, quick anger at the slightest irritation, depression etc

4. People use different things, methods or avenues to hide their depression e.g religiousity, food, alcohol, sex, drugs, seclusion, withdrawal from social circles etc

5. No matter how difficult, stressful or shameful it may seem, depressed or mentally insane people need more love and care (more than ever) from their loved ones. It could be all they need to overcome the depression.

6. It is not until one is mentally ill or insane before they should go and see a psychiatrist. If you notice any form of depression, sleeplessness, fear, over anxiety, wanting to be secluded or sudden withdrawal from social circles, unexplainable and incessant mood swings, anger at the slightest irritation, mental stress from work, family, finances etc, please see a psychiatrist.

6. God heals and heals totally. Just trust in Him.

7. In every situation, we must learn to give thanks to God. It could have been worse than this. What if my sister had stabbed herself or her daughter with the knife? Or gotten electrocuted while trying to forcefully pull out the wall lamp? Or even tried to light up the gas cooker? There is always a reason to thank God......just look closer!

8. No matter how terrible that situation may seem, it won't last for long. It will pass. This time last year, I wouldn't have believed that my sister will be very normal and even working.

9. Nothing is worth the stress. If you die from stressing yourself while trying to get something, you still won't get it. So why the stress? Everything has got its own time & season, what is yours will surely come to you at the right time without too much stress. I later got to find out (from interaction) that being a single mum at 27+ was what was eating my sister up and also joblessness/idleness (she was idle for a year after youth service). Whereas, I have seen women who are single at 40 and are still happy and hopeful.

Sometimes, when I look back at some of those events, I just laugh. Especially when we went to the police station for an extract to enable us apply for a replacement of some of her credentials. Instead of telling them that the credentials got missing, I told them the whole truth. They showed us pepper and extorted money from us. They mocked us at the station and marveled at the possibility of anyone burning their own academic credentials with a sane mind. They even asked us to bring pictures of the burnt ashes. No be small wahala ooo, but at the end, God took the glory. Thanks for your time.
@Lalasticlala, kindly help in sharing my testimony.

[b]Edited: I have read through the comments on this thread and I really appreciate your contributions. However, it is important that I address some of the points/questions raised. I laugh at the so-called atheists because I was once like them, non-challant about God. I never believed wickedness, evil spirits or witches existed. I felt every miracle was a function of science or by sheer providence. Today, I know better.
@frank317 said I should see a psychiatrist cos he thinks I also have mental issues for attributing all the glory to God. LOL

1. If the health workers deserve the ULTIMATE GLORY, why then do hospitals write clearly on their walls "We Care but God Heals"? Are we more knowledgable than the doctors themselves?

2. Just like @clitah has asked, if we do not give God the glory for my sister's healing, who gets the glory for the multinational job? This is a job that many "sane" people are desperately searching for, yet God gave her on a platter of gold.

3. Read junior66 comment below: [/b]

junior66: my elder sister has this same problem. as i type ryt now ours doors are all locked. hers began in december 2013 and has really never gone. pls pray for us too. i rejoyce with you and ur family.

[b]They have been battling with this issue since 2013 yet no much improvement have been recorded. Is my sister better than his? Or are the drugs they administered to my sister more effective than those administered to his sister?
It is God that gives total healing and He will surely grant @junior66 sister her perfect healing in Jesus Name.

4. I refered to insanity as a spirit not because of my knowledge but because of the understanding of what it truly is. If you take time to read my first thread on this same issue, you MAY understand where I am coming from. @Seangy4kongi had a similar personal experience and can relate perfectly with what I am saying.

5. Why didn't my Sister stab herself or her daughter? or set the house ablaze? or enter my mum's room and attack her? Afterall, she wasn't in her right senses and could have done anything. Yet, you folks say I shouldn't give God all the Glory? The bible says in Psalm 60:11 ".........for vain is the help of a man"

6. During our visits to the psychiatrist, I saw many beautiful, handsome and promising young men and women whose insanity was very violent. They had to be chained, they didn't recognize anyone and some of them have been there for years. My sister was never chained, never forced to the psychiatric hospital, she didn't have to stay for weeks in the hospital.........yet you're wondering why I give God all the glory? I have no regrets......Na God do am[/b]

Shalom!

All thanks belong to God!

A very big lesson learnt. God is awesome.

hallelujah... i am glad she is hale and hearty now

So it wasn't the psychiatrist who gave her drugs and treated for months that delivered your sister from insanity

lol.. in so far as I an happy for u and ur sister.. that doesn't stop me from airing my own view....

firstly.. when ur sister was in her unusual state.. u said ur mom was praying. noting happened until a doctor resuscitated her.


some pastors came to pray nothing happened only for same psychiatrist to heal her.

now u giving glory to works of pastors and prayer warriors now exempting the said doctors and psychiatrist who were the main character that did the job.


happy for u guys thoor.

Thank God for you.

Karlovich:
So it wasn't the psychiatrist who gave her drugs and treated for months that delivered your sister from insanity

Except the Lord heals the sick, the doctors and nurses work in vain, for the life of a man is in the hand of God.

Hmmmmm

Praise God

God be praised

Is insanity a spirit or an illness.

Edygrin:
Except the Lord heals the sick, the doctors and nurses work in vain, for the life of a man is in the hand of God.

Absurd line of thought. Do you also believe that the mechanic works but god fixes [cars]? If its not a verified miracle, its the result of research, development, training and treatment by those who don't just fold their hands and pray for things. The mechanism by which antipsychotic medications work is known, so please stop attributing that to god. There are natural laws and obviously no personal force at work interfering with those. You people shouldn't give a doctors glory to a god who might as well be termed imaginary.

Good to know that you sister is alright.

But I'm sorry to say that her getting well has nothing to do with God or prayers (my opinion).

She got well because of the months long medical attention given to her. It's good you acknowledged that fact.

I know of cases where people died because of their 'faith' in their pastor rather than seek medical attention.

OP to better understand what your sister went through, you should discuss with the doctor or doctors that treated her. I'm sure they won't point fingers at 'spirits' or any other imaginary being.

Bless God for her life

Omg.... Really sorry bro ,thank God she is fully back to normal

Glory, honour and adoration be to the most high.
Bless God for her life cos it's was only by his grace she was healed.

Depression a very bad sickness.

It's a good thing your sister's fine and I'm genuinely happy for your family but its the psychiatrist's effort that made your sister better.

krattoss:
lol.. in so far as I an happy for u and ur sister.. that doesn't stop me from airing my own view....

firstly.. when ur sister was in her unusual state.. u said ur mom was praying. noting happened until a doctor resuscitated her.


some pastors came to pray nothing happened only for same psychiatrist to heal her.

now u giving glory to works of pastors and prayer warriors now exempting the said doctors and psychiatrist who were the main character that did the job.


happy for u guys thoor.

May be you need a short trip down to Group Medical (a hospital) at Mokola round about in Ibadan and see for yourself their watch word.
WE CARE BUT GOD CURE.

God Loves you and cares for you. thanks.

Thank God

God is really wonderful

Glory be to God

[quote author=naijainstinct post=42268328]
9. Nothing is worth the stress. If you die from stressing yourself while trying to get something, you still won't get it. So why the stress? Everything has got its own time & season, what is yours will surely come to you at the right time without too much stress. I later got to find out (from interaction) that being a single mum at 27+ was what was eating my sister up and also joblessness/idleness (she was idle for a year after youth service). Whereas, I have seen women who are single at 40 and are still happy and hopeful.
[/quote

Nothing is really worth the stress. worrying over anything will not change it. we should just be focused on seeking solution and I believe we will find it in the strangest place......

God be praised!

samsard:
Absurd line of thought. Do you also believe that the mechanic works but god fixes [cars]? If its not a verified miracle, its the result of research, development, training and treatment by those who don't just fold their hands and pray for things. The mechanism by which antipsychotic medications work is known, so please stop attributing that to god. There are natural laws and obviously no personal force at work interfering with those. You people shouldn't give a doctors glory to a god who might as well be termed imaginary.

what is wrong with you? Can't you people just allow others to believe in God? How does it affect you? Yes! I believe in God, move on with your own life and stop trying to make people be confused like you!

Restoration all round.Her husband will soon come too.

( I will sing unto God who has done what he promised)
Chorus:-He has done what he promised.
(I will sing unto God he has done what he promised)
Chorus:- He has done what he promised.

Ooh! on that day
Shout Alleluia
Ooh! on that day
Shout Alleluia.
Alleluia! He has done what he promised.

lanre316:
Is insanity a spirit or an illness.

After at least 16 years of education (6-3-3-4), some folk will still say "spirit of insanity". It boggles my mind.

Why not spirit of malaria or spirit of lassa fever?

Religion has really messed up our rationality.